Trolley



Dec. 5, 1967 Filed Oct.

W. H. BIDGOOD TROLLEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.)

Dec. 5, 1967 w. H. BIDGOOD TROLLEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct 5, 1966United States Patent 3,356,184 TROLLEY William Henry Bidgood, 8 S.Morton St., Portobello, Edinburgh 15, Scotland Filed Oct. 5, 1966, Ser.No. 584,579 1 Claim. (Cl. 187-9) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A trolleyparticularly for use in a hospital comprises a castor mounted chassiswith an upstanding column formed in two portions so that the uppermostportion is movable longitudinally relative to the lowermost one. Anadjusting screw carried by the chassis mates with a screwthreaded memberof the movable portion of the column for adjusting the effective lengthof the column. A mechanical screw jack is carried in the movable portionof the column, the movable nut-like element of the jack carrying ahorizontal beam to which tines are attached through downwardly facingnotches so that the tines project over the chassis.

The subject of this invention is a trolley particularly for use in ahospital.

The handling of patients who are too ill to provide any assistancethemselves has always been a difliculty in hospitals. The problem is toprovide for a recumbent completely limp patient to be raised oil a bedor a stretcher, for example, for treatment or transfer without causingpain or discomfort or further injury while using the minimum of hospitalstalf.

It is an object of the present invention to provide means by which thismay be accomplished by a single nurse or other attendant.

A trolley according to the invention consists of a chassis mounted oncasters, at least one column upstanding from the chassis, a lifting jackdevice incorporated in the column, a horizontal beam attached to themovable member of the lifting jack, and tines attachable to the beam toproject substantially horizontally from the beam.

The lifting jack device may be of the mechanical screwjack type having avertical screw-threaded rod supported in the column and a nut-likeelement engaged with the screw-threaded rod, the beam being coupled tothe nutlike element.

The column may be located at one side of the chassis, the tines beingarranged to project above the chassis when engaged with the beam.

The means for rotating the screw-threaded rod, may include a gear boxhaving an output shaft to which the rod is coupled.

In some cases it may be considered desirable that the trolley willincorporate two upstanding columns each incorporating a lifting jackdevice, the beam being coupled to the movable members of both liftingjack devices. In this construction the gear box may have two outputshafts, each coupled to a respective lifting jack device, theconstruction being such that rotation of an input shaft will cause bothscrew-threaded rods to rotate simultaneously. The gear box may alsocontain provision for rotating the rods separately.

Alternatively, the lifting jack device may be a fluidpressure operatedjack device.

The chassis may consist of a single longitudinal memher with two spacedoutriggers, the longitudinal member being fitted with casters and eachoutrigger being fitted with a castor at its outermost end. Theoutriggers may be hinged to the longitudinal member to facilitatestoring of the trolley.

Patented Dec. 5, 1967 The gear box may be hand operated i.e., the inputshaft may carry a hand wheel. Alternatively an electric motor may becoupled to the input shaft. The electric motor may ba connectible to aconvenient mains power point or may be arranged to be connected to abattery mounted on the chassis, the chassis supporting the necessarycontrol equipment.

The column may incorporate a guide block guided to slide vertically inthe column, the beam being fixed to the guide block.

The column may be in two portions movable relatively to one another toprovide an adjustment of the length of the column.

A handle for pushing the chassis may be provided at each end of thechassis and each handle may be pivoted to a support on the chassis insuch wise that the handle may be swung out of the way when not in use.

Each tine may be in the form of a pointed strip, the end remote from thepoint being formed to engage the beam. Each tine may be formed with anotch opening downwardly and formed to be engageable with the upper edgeportion of the beam.

A handle for moving the chassis transversely may be fitted to thecolumn.

One or more of the castors may carry an electric motor electricallyconnectible by way of control equipment to a battery mounted on thechassis.

A positive lock may be provided on at least one wheel and on the castor.

A practical embodiment of the invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a trolleyand FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the trolley.

In the drawings, 1 denotes a chassis mounted on castors 2, 3 denotes ahollow column upstanding from the chassis 1, the column being in twotelescopic parts 3A and 3B, the part 3B being attached to the chassis 1and the part 3A being slidable in the part 3B. The column part 3Asupports a screw-threaded bar 4 engaged with a nut-like element 5 towhich is attached a guide member 6 carrying rollers 7 bearing againstthe inner surface of the column part 3A to resist the thrust exerted bythe weight of a beam 8 attached to the guide members 6. 9 denotes tinespointed at their outer ends and formed at their other ends with notches10 engageable with the beam 6. 11 denotes a hand wheel coupled bygearing 12 to the screw-threaded bar 4. The lower end of the columnportion 3A is provided with an internally screw-threaded member 13engaged with an adjusting screw 14 rotatable in the chassis 1 andrestrained against axial movement. 15 denotes a brake device associatedwith one of the castor wheels 2.

In practice, the operation of lifting a patient from a bed or astretcher for transfer to another position or for performance of any ofthe normal nursing functions is performed as follows:

As many tines 9 as are required for supporting the patient are insertedbetween the patient and the bed or other support on which he is resting,the tines being so spaced that the weight of the patient will bedistributed as evenly as possible on them and the notched ends beingarranged to project clear of the bed or other support. The hand wheel 11is operated to cause the rod 4 to rotate in the appropriate direction tolower the beam 8 to a level below that of the notched ends of the tines.The trolley is then moved up to the bed or other support, the outriggers2 moving below the support. The trolley is then manoeuvred and thenotched ends of the tines are so adjusted that the notches on the tinesare in vertical alignment with the beam. The hand wheel 11 is thenrotated in the direction to cause the beam to rise and engage thenotches 10 in the tines 9. Further rotation of the hand wheel 11 in thesame direction then causes the patient to be lifted clear of the supporton which he was resting. The patient may then be attended to with thetrolley in that same position or he may be transferred to anothersupport such as a bed or a stretcher by wheeling the trolley to thedesired position, the patient being placed on the new support bymanoeuvring the trolley so that he is held above the support, the handwheel 11 being then operated to cause the beam 8 to move downwardlyuntil the tines 9 rest on the support. Further rotation of the handwheel 11 in the same direction causes the beam to move a further amountdownwardly until the beam 8 becomes disengaged from the notches 10 inthe tines 9. The trolley is then wheeled away and the tines 9 arewithdrawn from underneath the patient.

The screw-threaded member 13 and the'screw 14 provide the means foradjusting the efiective length of the column 3 to permit the trolley tobe used with widely difiering heights of beds or other supports withouthaving to make the screw-threaded bar 4 an excessive length. Since theamount of friction between the bar 4 and the nut 5 has a large effect onthe effort required at the hand wheel 11 it is essential that the bar 4should be accurately made. It is thus desirable to keep it as short aspossible and the use of the element 13 and the screw 14 permits this tobe done. Screw 14 can be adjusted by hand beneath the chassis, or in anyother convenient manner, to adjust column portion 3A.

What is claimed is:

A trolley comprising a chassis, said chassis comprising a singlelongitudinal member and two spaced Outriggers, at least one castorfitted to the longitudinal member and at least one castor fitted to eachoutrigger at its outermost end; a least one column upstanding from thechassis at one side of the chassis, said column being in two portions,the lowermost one of which is fixed to the chassis and the uppermost oneof which is movable longitudinally relative to the lowermost one; aninternally screwthreaded member fixed to the uppermost portion of thecolumn, an axially restrained adjusting screw rotatable in the chassisengaged with the internally screw-threaded member for adjusting theuppermost portion of the column relative to the lowermost portion; alifting jack device of the mechanical screw-jack type having a verticalscrew-threaded rod support in the uppermost portion of the column and anut-like element engaged with the screw-threaded rod for verticalmovement upon rotation of the screw-threaded rod; :1 horizontal beamcoupled to the nut-like element; and tines each in the form of a pointedstrip, each tine having its end remote from the point formed with anotch facing downwardly and arranged to be engageable with the upperportion of the beam in such manner that the tine projects over thechassis when the tine is engaged with the beam.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,204,343 6/1940 Dawson 5862,404,734 7/1946 Lenahan 586 2,843,280 7/1958 Stopps 214-750 2,962,73012/1960 Carnes 254 7.2 3,063,576 11/1962 Hofmeister 214 750 3,174,6343/1965 Peck 1s7-9 3,309,060 3/1967 Villars 254 -7.6

EVON C. BLUNK, Primary Examiner.

H. C. HORNSBY, Assistant Examiner.

